Project Provo: Why NBA Jets Are Cluttering the Tarmac in Utah
It used to be a layover. Now, it's the destination. With the 2026 tournament looming, the BYU Cougars aren't just a Cinderella story—they are a fully operational NBA factory parked in the Wasatch Mountains.
I was texting a friend in the Warriors' front office last night. His location? Not San Francisco. Not New York. Provo, Utah. "I've seen more lottery talent here in 48 hours than I did all last month in the ACC," he typed back. That is the new reality Kevin Young has engineered.
Forget what you think you know about BYU basketball. The Jimmer Fredette days were a fun, chaotic outlier. This? This is sustainable industrial design.
"Kevin didn't just recruit high schoolers. He recruited a front office mentality. He sold them on the idea that Provo is an NBA embassy." — Anonymous Eastern Conference Executive
We saw the proof of concept last year. The 2025 Sweet 16 run wasn't a fluke; it was the brochure. When Egor Demin parlayed his season in the Big 12 into a top-10 draft selection by the Brooklyn Nets, the floodgates didn't just open—they were torn off the hinges. That success legitimized Young's pitch to AJ Dybantsa, and now, here we are.
The One-and-Done Revolution
Watching Dybantsa in person is disorienting. He wears a college jersey, but the spacing, the reads, the isolation cadence? It's pure Sunday afternoon NBA. The Cougars are currently sitting near the top of the Big 12, not because they are older or more disciplined (the usual BYU tropes), but because they have the best player on the floor every single night.
👀 Confidential: The AJ Dybantsa Scouting Report
Source: Senior NBA Scout
- The Good: "He processes the game at 1.5x speed. The shot creation is elite. We haven't seen a wing this polished at 19 since Tatum."
- The Bad: "Defensive motor drifts when the offense isn't flowing. BYU hides him well in zone looks, but in March? Teams will hunt him."
- The Verdict: "Consensus No. 1 pick. No debate."
But having the future No. 1 pick is a double-edged sword in March. We've seen star-heavy teams crash out early (ask Ben Simmons' LSU or countless Kentucky squads). The difference here might be the supporting cast. Young has retained enough veteran grit—the Richie Saunders types—to do the dirty work while Dybantsa paints masterpieces.
March is a Different Beast
Here is the whisper making the rounds in scouting circles: Can they handle the mud fight? The Big 12 is physical, sure, but the NCAA Tournament is a erratic pressure cooker. Last year's loss to Alabama in the Regionals exposed a lack of perimeter speed on defense. Have they fixed it?
Partially. The offense is historic (KenPom metrics are glowing), but the defense remains the variable. If they get drawn into a half-court wrestling match with a team like Houston or a healthy UConn, the "NBA spacing" might feel claustrophobic.
Kevin Young knows this. He isn't coaching for a moral victory or a "nice season." He's coaching for a banner. The private jets at the airport aren't leaving until they see a coronation—or a crash. Either way, the eyes of the basketball world are fixed on Provo.
